Nigeria Blocks Access To 3 Major Crypto Exchanges
Nigeria has ordered internet service providers to restrict access to top crypto exchanges, including Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken, according to the FT.
The move represents a stark shift amidst the country’s expanding embrace of digital asset adoption and proposed market regulation.
- The telecoms regulator reportedly demanded website blocks this week.
- Crypto exchanges help establish unofficial FX rates as the naira sinks.
- Blocked exchanges include Coinbase, Binance and Kraken.
According to the FT report, Nigeria’s telecommunications overseer instructed ISPs to begin blocking major exchange domains. By Thursday, users faced intermittent access.
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Nigeria orders ISPs to block Binance, Coinbase, Kraken
The crackdown aims to curtail cryptocurrencies from heightening currency instability as the Nigerian naira hits repeated lows against the US dollar.
A senior aide to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu exemplified government hostility by accusing Binance specifically of “blatantly setting the exchange rate” in the country and thus subverting monetary authorities. He endorsed banning crypto outright to stop the currency’s bleeding.
The hostility marks a sharp turn after Nigeria cultivated one of the world’s highest crypto adoption rates. The country had also moved to formally regulate digital assets rather than force a ban.
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However, threats to currency stability seemingly motivated emergency measures blocking the leading crypto exchanges. Nigerians have increasingly stored personal wealth in crypto amid plunging trust in the naira.
With the currency struggling to hold up, officials are taking steps to discourage alternatives. It remains unclear how successful restricting major exchanges will prove if motivated users migrate to decentralized exchanges.
